• by Rob Williams , December 3, 2019

Digital publisher Vox Media is shutting down several of its Curbed websites — but the move isn't related to the company's acquisition of New York magazine's publisher earlier this year, The Wrap reported.

Curbed, which focuses on real estate and urban design, will cease publishing its city-focused sites for Philadelphia, New Orleans, Seattle and Washington, according to a tweet from a former writer for Curbed NOLAthat covered New Orleans.<

That leaves Curbed with sites in Atlanta, Austin, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco. Curbed plans to expand the sites for Austin and Boston, a spokesperson told The Wrap.

It's an interesting phenomenon to see some Curbed sites merit expansion, while others cease publishing. Philadelphia, Seattle and Washington are three of the 20 biggest cities in the United States; they have generally robust real-estate markets. New Orleans is a smaller city, but a major commercial hub for the Gulf Coast region.<

Perhaps the aftermath of the Great Recession continues to impair the finances of younger adults, who otherwise would be buying homes and decorating them, spurring more readership for Curbed. 

The move marks another realignment of Curbed's brands, which had included fashion site Racked and Eater, a digital publication focused on restaurants. Last year, Vox shut down Racked and rebranded the site as The Goods to focus on consumer culture.

Vox acquired Curbed in 2013 for a reported $20 million to $30 million.